The City of Vevey offers excellent services and a favourable living environment for seniors: a low gradient in the city center, a wide range of cultural and commercial activities, an extensive public transport network and a wide range of service providers and institutions.
However, Vevey has not defined a policy on ageing. Joining the WHO Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities reflects the desire to develop a global strategy to tend towards a sustainable age-friendly environment. Considering the significant percentage of residents over the age of 60 and its evolution in the coming years, the City of Vevey’s main objective is to define the foundations and objectives for ageing within its territory.
Concerned about its senior population, Vevey has been setting up annual meetings dedicated to them for several years.
In order to support the new retirees in this phase of life, Vevey invites them to a festive evening. This is an opportunity to present the different alternatives available, to allow them to consider this as a positive step and to prevent isolation. Staying active with sport activities or providing their skills as volunteers are all opportunities that are offered to new retirees during this evening. In the same vein, Vevey has been subsidizing for many years an association providing retirement preparation courses.
For several years, Vevey has been organizing a cruise on Lake Léman for residents living in a retirement home, users of an adult daycare center and a voluntary transport service.
To initiate a global reflexion on ageing, a municipal commission dedicated to seniors was created in 2015. It includes members of the municipal administration, representatives of the various political parties in Vevey and external skateholders working for the elderly.
In order to develop a transversal approach to ageing, awareness-raising among the various municipal services and external skateholders has been initiated. The various steps of the process will be then implemented with the support of the elders’ and professionals’ expertise. A first step was already taken to question the issue of housing and home support for seniors in Vevey.